Prevention and early diagnosis of oral carcinoma in construction workers in Italy: a pilot project

Objectives: A research project on occupational exposure in relation to oral carcinoma was periodic compulsory check-ups, oral examinations were performed to detect pathologies and the prevalence of potentially neoplastic oral conditions and a selfassessment questionnaire was administered to all of the subjects. The questionnaire was structured to collect information regarding demographic and clinical characteristics, risk habits (tobacco and alcohol consumption) and oral health habits, and to allow an assessment of knowledge about oral cancer, related risk factors and early signs. Results: The study cohort included people with different ethnicities, and there were significant differences in clinical characteristics between Italians and other Europeans. The subjects showed a good knowledge about oral cancer and related risk factors (with correct answers provided to >50% of the questions) but insufficient knowledge about the early signs of oral carcinoma (correct-answer rates of 16–42%). There were high rates of habits that are potentially harmful to oral health, such as smoking (43.8%) and alcohol consumption (57%). The daily habit of brushing teeth was present in 92.6% of the subjects, but they had a low propensity to undergo regular dental examinations. The percentage of subjects with pathologies of the oral cavity was 18.6%. Conclusions: Despite the smallness of the sample, this pilot project could facilitate the acquisition of valid and cost-effective data for the primary prevention of oral cancer through information and educational campaigns on the related risk factors.